Inclined linear multi-phase gravity separation system

ABSTRACT

A separation system for separating components of a flow of multi-phase fluid includes an elongate separator vessel oriented on an incline to define a lower inlet end having an inlet for receiving the fluid flow, a raised outlet end, and an inclined top inner surface extending from the inlet end to the outlet end. The system includes a lower weir plate positioned above the inlet end and an upper weir plate positioned below the outlet end having an upper edge defining a liquid level within the separator vessel, thereby allowing a lighter fluid component to flow over the upper edge into a upper section located forwardly of the upper weir plate. The system also includes a clear water pipe with a withdrawal opening positioned below the upper weir plate. The incline of the separator vessel is adjustable in accordance with the composition of the multi-phase fluid.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/912,309, filed Oct. 8, 2019, which is incorporated byreference in its entirety herein, and for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to multi-phase fluid gravityseparation systems, and more specifically to all-gravity oily waterclarification systems used in water processing facilities that receiveoil-contaminated water from hydrocarbon-producing wells.

SUMMARY

Briefly described, one embodiment of the present disclosure comprises amulti-phase fluid gravity separation system, such as an oily waterclarification system, for separating the various components of a flow ofmulti-phase fluid. The separation system generally includes a linear orelongate separator vessel oriented on an incline to define a lower inletend having an inlet for receiving the fluid flow, a raised outlet end,and an inclined top inner surface of the vessel extending from the inletend to the outlet end. The separation system also includes a lower weirplate positioned above the inlet end to define a lower inlet section,and an upper weir plate positioned below the outlet end to define anupper outlet section. The upper weir plate has an upper edge that alsodefines the liquid level within the separator vessel, and which allows alighter liquid component, such as skim oil, to flow over the upper edgeinto the upper outlet section located forwardly of the upper weir plate.The separation system further includes a clear water pipe with awithdrawal opening positioned below the upper weir plate in anintermediate layer of clear water. In one aspect, the incline of theseparator vessel is adjustable in accordance with the composition of themulti-phase fluid, generally between about 10 degrees to about 45degrees. In another aspect, the separation system includes a cyclonicinlet separator at the lower inlet that is operable to provide aninitial dynamic centrifugal separation of the multi-phase fluid uponentry into the separator vessel.

The present disclosure will be better understood upon review of thedetailed description set forth below taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawing figures, which are briefly described as follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an inclined linear multi-phase fluidgravity separation system, in accordance with a representativeembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a cut-away top view of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cut-away side view of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cut-away perspective view of the separation system of FIG.1.

FIG. 5 is a close-up cut-away top perspective view of the lower inletend of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a close-up cut-away bottom perspective view of the lower inletend of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a top view of a representative cyclonic inlet separatorlocated within the lower inlet end of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the representative cyclonic inlet separator ofFIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a close-up cut-away perspective view of a slotted diverterplate and a solid baffle plate located in the intermediate section ofthe separation system of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are front and side views, respectfully, of the slotteddiverter plate of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a front view of the solid baffle plate of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a close-up cut-away perspective view of the internal clearwater pipe and upper weir plate of the separation system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 13 is a close-up cross section side view of the internal clearwater pipe and upper weir plate of FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a schematic side view of the inclined linear multi-phasefluid gravity separation system, in accordance with anotherrepresentative embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 15 is a schematic side view of the inclined linear multi-phasefluid gravity separation system, in accordance with yet anotherrepresentative embodiment of the present disclosure.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate and understand that, accordingto common practice, various features and elements of the drawingsdescribed above are not necessarily drawn to scale, and that thedimensions and relative positions between the features or elements maybe expanded, reduced or otherwise altered to more clearly illustrate thevarious embodiments of the present disclosure depicted therein

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description, in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, is provided as an enabling teaching of exemplary embodimentsof an all-gravity water clarification or separation system that isuseful in salt water disposal (SWD) facilities or other water processingfacilities that receive contaminated water from one or morehydrocarbon-producing wells. The disclosure further includes one or moremethods for separating and/or clarifying the components of a flow ofmixed or multi-phase fluids that generally includes water as a primarycomponent. As described below, the system and methods can provideseveral significant advantages and benefits over other systems andmethods for separating or clarifying the components of a multi-phasefluid currently available in the art. However, the recited advantagesare not meant to be limiting in any way, as one skilled in the art willappreciate that other advantages may also be realized upon practicingthe present disclosure. It will be appreciated, moreover, that otherapplications for the disclosed separation system, in addition to theclarification of produced oily water from hydrocarbon production wells,are also possible and considered to fall within the scope of the presentdisclosure.

Furthermore, those skilled in the relevant art will recognize thatchanges can be made to the described embodiments while still obtainingthe beneficial results. It will also be apparent that some of theadvantages and benefits of the described embodiments can be obtained byselecting some of the features of the embodiments without utilizingother features, and that features from one embodiment may be combinedwith features from other embodiments in any appropriate combination. Forexample, any individual or collective features of method embodiments maybe applied to apparatus, product or system embodiments, and vice versa.Accordingly, those who work in the art will recognize that manymodifications and adaptations to the embodiments described are possibleand may even be desirable in certain circumstances, and are a part ofthe disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is provided as anillustration of the principles of the embodiments and not in limitationthereof, since the scope of the invention is to be defined by theclaims.

Referring now in more detail to the drawing figures, wherein like partsare identified with like reference numerals throughout the severalviews, FIGS. 1-14 illustrate one embodiment of the all-gravity waterclarification or separation system 10 (also known as a multi-phase fluidgravity separation system) of the present disclosure. With initialreference to FIGS. 1-4, the separation system 10 generally includes anelongate or linear separator vessel 20 that is inclined at an angle 24relative to horizontal or ground surface 25. As shown in the drawings,the elongate separator vessel 20 can comprise a cylindrical tubular body22 with a circular cross-section, and can further include a roundedinlet end cap 32 and a rounded outlet end cap 82, which in one aspectcan be partially hemispherical. It will be understood, however, thatother shapes (including but not limited to oblong, square, or othernon-circular cross-sectional shapes and end caps), inclinations (from 0to 85 degrees), and configurations for the separator vessel are alsopossible and considered to fall within the scope of the presentdisclosure.

An inlet flow 6 of mixed or multi-phase fluid (including but not limitedto produced oily water) can be introduced into the separator vessel 20at the lower inlet end 30, such as through an inlet flange/pipe 34extending through the inlet end cap 32, and from there directed togradually flow upward and forward toward the raised outlet end 80, atlow speed and with a maximum retention time, so as to encourage anatural gravity-based separation of the components of the multi-phasefluid. In the salt water disposal (SWD) application referenced above,for example, the inlet flow 6 of produced oily water into the separationsystem 10 generally includes gases and vapors, oil, water, andparticulate matter (such as sand), and can further include additionalimpurities or contaminants such sludge, dirt, semisolid paraffins, andthe like.

As shown in the drawings, the inlet flow 6 may be introduced into anearly-full separator vessel 20 through an optional inlet separate orcyclonic inlet diverter 90 that is completely submerged at the lowersection 38 of the separator vessel 20. The cyclonic inlet diverter 90can be configured so as to provide an initial centrifugal separation ofthe various components, and in one aspect may be adapted or configuredfor the specific composition of the mixed fluid being introduced intothe separation system 10.

One embodiment of the optional cyclonic inlet diverter 90 is shown infurther detail in FIGS. 5-8, and generally comprises a much smallerenclosed elongate vessel or tubular body 92 defining a diverterlongitudinal axis 91, and having opposed outlet ends 95, a tubularsidewall 94 extending between the opposed outlet ends 95, and a mid-lineinlet port 96 located midway between the outlet ends. The diverterlongitudinal axis 91 is generally oriented substantially parallel withthe separator vessel's inclined centerline plane, and substantiallyperpendicular to the separator vessel's vertical centerline plane. Thediverter 90 can include a single inlet port 96 that is horizontallylocated (i.e. along the diverter longitudinal or centerline axis) midwaybetween the opposed outlet ends, and that can be vertically located inan offset position to the longitudinal axis (i.e. above or below adiverter horizontal centerline plane) so the inlet flow enters directlyinto the upper or lower half or hemisphere of the elongate vessel. Thus,in one aspect the fluid flow through the inlet port 96 can besubstantially tangential to an upper or lower portion, respectively, ofthe tubular sidewall 94 of the elongate vessel 92.

Internal components, such as a splitter plate (not shown), can thensplit the inlet fluid flow into a first sub-stream and a secondsub-stream, with each sub-stream flowing outward through the tubularbody 92 toward an outlet end 95. With the inlet port 96 located abovethe diverter horizontal centerline plane, the splitter plate and roundtubular sidewall 94 of the elongate vessel 92 can naturally initiate thecyclonic motion of the fluid as it flows around and downwardly acrossthe far portion of the tubular sidewall 94, following the circularcontour of the inner sidewall surfaces. Additional internal components,such as swirl plates (also not shown), can be positioned on each side ofthe splitter plate, and can have angled surfaces configured to increasethe cyclonic motion in the first and second sub-streams within thediverter vessel. Through dynamic centrifugal action/separation, thecyclonic flows can quickly push the heavier constituents (solids andwater) further outward toward the interior rounded surfaces of thetubular sidewall 94 than the lighter constituents (gas and oil).

The cyclonic inlet diverter 90 shown in FIGS. 5-8 can further includemultiple outlet ports on each end of the cyclonic inlet diverter, with aseparate outlet port for a majority portion of each constituent of themixed fluid on each side. For instance, an aperture 97 formed througheach opposing end wall 95 of the elongate vessel and centered about thediverter longitudinal axis 91 can serve as a gas outlet end port, whilean enlarged radial aperture 98 formed through the lateral sidewallportion of the diverter vessel adjacent to each opposing end wall canserve as a water/particulate matter outlet port. Likewise, one or moreadditional but smaller radial apertures 99 formed through the lateralsidewall portions of the diverter vessel between each enlarged radialaperture 98 and the midline inlet port 96 can serve as oil outlet ports.

Additional details and disclosure regarding the structure, positioning,and operation of the cyclonic inlet diverter within asubstantially-horizontal water clarification system, including theinternal components such as the splitter and swirl plates, can be foundin U.S. Pat. No. 11,065,559 which is incorporated by reference in itsentirety herein and for all purposes. It will nevertheless beappreciated that the cyclonic inlet diverter used in the inclinedseparation system 10 of the present disclosure, such as that shown inFIGS. 5-8, can differ from the cyclonic inlet diverters of U.S. Pat. No.11,065,559, especially in that the cyclonic inlet diverter in theinstant disclosure can be completely submerged within the mixed fluid atthe lower inlet end 30 of the inclined elongate separator vessel 20.Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 5-6, the cyclonic inlet diverter 90 mayalso be modified so that the radial outlet apertures 98, 99 are locatedat an angle below the horizontal, so as to direct the outlet flowdownward onto a lower portion of the inlet end cap 32.

With reference back to FIGS. 1-4, a first or lower weir plate 40 can bepositioned forward and/or above the cyclonic inlet separator 90 todefine a lowest, extra-heavy material section 38, with the lower weirplate 40 extending upwards from the bottom inner surface 28 to near atop inner surface 26 of the separator vessel 20. As the mixed fluidflows upwardly over the upper edge 42 of this first weir plate 40, theheaviest particulate matter falls out and settles downward toward thebottom of the lower section 38 for removal through a lowermost bottomdrain 39. At the same time the gas and vapor components 77 immediatelybubble upward through the mixed liquid toward the inclined top innersurface 26 (which is forwardly and upwardly inclined at a predeterminedbut adjustable angle), and then travel forward and upward along the topinner surface toward to the raised outlet end 80, where the gases andvapors 77 bubble up through the liquid surface 74 into an enclosed gashead space 78 defined by the outlet end cap 82. A gas/vapor outlet 84through the uppermost top inner surface of the outlet end cap 82 allowsfor the gaseous components 77 to exit the separator vessel 20.

The oily water mixture with the remainder of the entrained particulatematter flows slowly upward over the upper edge 42 of the first or lowerweir plate 40, and then back downward and forward into an intermediatesection 58 of the separator vessel 20. As described in more detailbelow, for instance, the intermediate section 58 can contain, at itslower end proximate the forward side of the lower weir plate 40, a heavyliquid portion 45 of a layer of as-yet-unseparated oily water 55, abovewhich can form an intermediate layer of clarified or clear water 63 andupper layers of partially oily water 71 and skim oil 75.

As shown in the drawings, a perforated or slotted plate 44 can besecured to the upper edge 42 of the lower weir plate 40 to aid indistributing the flow of the mixed fluid across the width of theseparator vessel 20, thereby slowing and calming the liquid componentsas they move forwardly into the intermediate section 58. In one aspectthe perforated or slotted plate 44 can extend rearwardly to the inletend cap 32 and forwardly into the intermediate section 58 beyond thelower weir plate 40, so that the liquid components of the mixed fluidpass through the slots or perforations both when exiting the lowersection 38 and again when entering the intermediate section 58.

The intermediate section 58 can be the longest section of the linearseparation system 10, and defines the volume where most of theseparation of the fluid components takes place. Throughout theintermediate section 58, for instance, diverter and/or baffle plates canbe strategically positioned in the upper and lower halves of theseparator vessel, causing the fluid to follow a tortuous vertical pathas it slowly flows forwardly and upwardly through the separator vesseltoward the “light fluid” portion at its upper end. The longer dwelltimes and changes in direction can help to separate the oil moleculesfrom the water molecules, with the lighter oil moving vertically upwardtoward the separator vessel's top inner surface 26.

For example, and with reference to FIGS. 9-11, in one aspect thetortuous vertical path of the oily water through the intermediatesection may be defined by slotted diverter plates 50 positioned withinthe upper half or hemisphere of the separator vessel and solid baffleplates 54 positioned in axially offset locations within the lower halfor hemisphere of the separator vessel. The internal diverter plates 50and baffle plates 54 can cause a majority portion of the fluid to movealternatively downward and upward as it travels axially toward theraised outlet end 80, while providing gaps 53, 57 between the top edgesor planar sheet portions 52 of the diverter plates 50 and the bottomedges 56 of the baffle plates 54 and the inner surfaces 26, 28 of theseparator vessel 20, respectively. In particular, the gaps 53 betweenthe top edges or planar sheet portions 52 of the slotted diverter plates50 and the top inner surface 26 of the separator vessel 20 can allowboth the gaseous components and the separated oil to naturally travelupward and forward along the top inner surface toward the raised outletend 80 of the separator vessel. In contrast, the gaps 57 between thebottom edges 56 of the solid baffle plates 54 and the bottom innersurface 28 of the separator vessel 20 can allow for any residualparticulate matter and the heavier fluid components to travel backdownward along bottom inner surface 28 toward the heavy fluid portion 45of the intermediate section adjacent the forward surface of the lowerweir plate 40. In addition, the slots 51 in the slotted diverter plates50 can be sized and spaced from one another to control, spread out, andquiet the flow of the oily water through the intermediate section 58 tobetter promote the natural gravity-based separation of the fluidcomponents.

As noted above, upon arrival at the top inner surface 26 of theintermediate section 56, the gaps 53 above the top ends 52 of the upperhalf diverter plates 50 allow both the gaseous components and theseparated oil to naturally flow upward and forward along the top innersurface 28 toward the raised outlet end 80 of the separator vessel 20,eventually reaching a upper section 88 that is defined by a second orupper weir plate 70 and the outlet end cap 82. Similar to the lower weirplate, the upper weir plate 70 can extend upward from the bottom innersurface 28 of the separator vessel 20 to an upper edge 72 that is spacedbelow the top inner surface 28. The upper edge 72 of the upper weirplate 70 can define the overall liquid level 74 in the separator vessel20, with the gaseous components 77 bubbling up through the liquidsurface 74 and into the enclosed gas head space 78 defined by the upperportion of the outlet end cap 82. Moreover, the upper weir plate 70 alsoserves as a weir that allows the separated or skim oil component 75 ofthe multi-phase fluid to flow laterally from an upper portion of theintermediate section 58, over the upper weir plate's upper edge 72, andinto the oil section or “oil bucket” 76 that is located forwardly of theupper weir plate 70, from whence the oil 75 is withdrawn through the oiloutlet 86 through the bottom inner surface or a lower portion of theoutlet end cap 82.

The separation system 10 further includes an internal clear water pipe60 having a withdrawal opening 61 that can be located adjacent orproximate to the bottom inner surface 28 of the separator vessel 20below the upper weir plate 70, where the clarified or clear watercomponent 63 will naturally be the most clean. From the withdrawalopening 61, the internal clear water pipe 60 can extend upwardly andsubstantially parallel to the upper weir plate 70, toward an upside downor inverted U-shaped elbow 64, also known as a “gooseneck”, thatreverses the direction of the flow of clear water back downward towardthe bottom inner surface 28 of the separator vessel 20. The invertedelbow 64 can have a convex lower surface that serves as a pour-oversurface 65 for the clarified water 63, and which can be positioned aboutor below the elevation of the upper edge 72 of the upper weir plate 70so as to naturally continuously withdraw liquid from the intermediatelayer of clarified or clear water 73. To prevent the formation of asiphoning vacuum within the inverted elbow 64 created by the outflowingwater, a short internal pipe 67 can extend through the concave uppersurface of the inverted elbow to vent the elbow space to the enclosedgas head space 78 above the surface 74 of the liquid contained withinthe separator vessel 20.

The portion of the internal clear water pipe 60 extending from thewithdrawal opening 61 to the inverted elbow 64 or “gooseneck” may bedefined as the rising section 62 of the clear water pipe. Moreover, therising section 62 can be of sufficient length to vertically separate thewithdrawal opening 61 from the pour-over surface 65, thereby reducing orpreventing any disturbance or turbulence created by the clear water 63pouring over the gooseneck interior surface from being transmitted backinto the bulk of the liquid within the separator vessel.

From the inverted elbow 64, the internal clear water pipe 60 can directthe flow of clarified water 63 back downward in a first descendingsection 66 toward the bottom inner surface 28 of the separator vessel 20and rearwardly in a second descending section 68 toward the lower end ofthe intermediate section 58, where it can be turned once more to exitthe separator vessel 20 through a clear water outlet 69 that can extendthrough the bottom inner surface. The rearward or second descendingsection 68 of the internal clear water pipe 60 is illustrated in thedrawings as a long section extending downward through the intermediatesection 58 of the separator vessel, so as to locate the clear wateroutlet 69 as a more convenient location closer to grade. Nevertheless,it is foreseen that other configurations for the internal clear waterpipe 60, such as a rearward leg of shorter length or a lateral outletthrough the side of the separator vessel, are also possible andconsidered to fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

It is understood that as the oily water mixture flows forwardly andupwardly through the intermediate section 58 of the separator vessel 20toward the raised outlet end 80, the liquid components will naturallyseparate or stratify under the influence of gravity into a top layer ofskim oil 75 that is adjacent the upper weir plate 70 and the enclosedgas head space 78, an upper layer of partially oily water 71, and anintermediate layer of clarified or clear water 63 having equal to orless than a prescribed threshold amount of entrained oil. Theintermediate layer of clarified water 63 remains above anas-yet-unseparated lower layer of oily water 55, which also includes theheavy fluid portion 45 with any entrained particulate matter that iscarried over the lower weir plate 40. Given the size of the separatorvessel 20 relative to the rate of the inlet flow 6, the different layerscan be generally quiescent, with only the bubbling up of the gaseouscomponents 77 and the separated oil 75 breaking through the liquidsurface 74 at the raised outlet end 80. In one aspect this can comprisemoderate bubbling along the boundary of the liquid surface 74 with thetop inner surface 26 of the tubular body 22, together with smallereffervescent-type bubbling across the remainder of the liquid surface74.

In one representative embodiment, the dimensions of the separator vessel20 and its internal components (including but not limited to the lengthand cross-sectional diameter of the tubular body 22, the height of theupper weir plate 70 relative to the height/diameter of the tubular body22, and the internal diameter and height of the rising section 62 of theclear water pipe 60 relative to the height of the upper edge 72 of theupper weir plate 70) may be configured so that the upper layer ofpartially oily water 71 immediately below the top layer of skim oil 75does not extend downwardly below the upper weir plate 70 for mostanticipated flows of mixed fluid. This aspect of the separation system10 can ensure that the withdrawal opening 61 for the internal clearwater pipe 60 remains in the intermediate layer of clarified or clearwater 63 and spaced below the upper layers of partially oily water 71and skim oil 75.

Furthermore, and with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15, the inclinationangle 24 of the separation system 10 can also be modified at theoperation site to further configure or customize the system to aparticular composition of multi-phase fluids. For example, adjusting theinclination 24 of the separator vessel 20 downward to a smaller angle,as shown in FIG. 14, effectively increases the volume of the separatedoil layers 71, 75 relative to the volume of the separated clear waterlayer 63, so as to accommodate a higher percentage of oil within theflow of mixed fluid (in the quiescent steady-state or equilibriumcondition) without the oily water layer 71 downwardly encroaching on thewithdrawal opening 61 located in the clear water layer 63. In contrast,adjusting the inclination 24 of the separator vessel 20 upward to agreater angle, as shown in FIG. 15, effectively reduces the volume ofthe separated oil layer 71, 75 relative to the volume of the separatedclear water layer 63 in the quiescent steady-state or equilibriumcondition, thereby accommodating a higher percentage of water within theflow of mixed fluid, while still forming an upper layer of partiallyoily water 71 having sufficient thickness (or dwell time) to provide forthe improved separation of the skim oil layer 75 from the clear waterlayer 63.

If desired, sight glasses 18 or similar monitoring systems can belocated on or within the separator vessel 20 and straddling theanticipated boundary lines between the separated layers, so as toprovide visual or electronic confirmation of the extent or thickness ofthe various separated fluid layers during operation, and thereby confirma proper or effective inclination of the vessel.

In some embodiments the separation system 10 can further include a‘nano-bubble’ or ‘micro-bubble’ gas injection system 46 (see FIG. 1), inwhich a series of perforated tubes or similar structures can bepositioned adjacent the bottom inner surface 28 of the separator vessel20 in the intermediate section 58, within the lower portion 45 of theas-yet-unseparated lower layer of oily water 55, or also within thelowest, extra-heavy material section 38 below the lower weir plate 40.The gas injection system 46 can be configured to produce numerousstreams of very small gas bubbles that travel vertically upward throughthe liquid column to the top inner surface 26, with the bubblesinteracting with and/or capturing entrained oil during their passage tohelp lift the entrained oil to the top inner surface 26. Theupward-flowing curtain 47 of gas bubbles can also serve to betterseparate or ‘scrub’ the oil component and solids or other impuritiesfrom the water component. In one aspect the injected gas can be naturalgas, compressed air, a neutral gas (e.g. nitrogen), or other fluids in agaseous state.

As indicated above, the separation system has been described herein interms of one or more preferred embodiments and methodologies consideredby the inventor to represent the best mode of carrying out theinvention. It will be understood by the skilled artisan, however, that awide range of additions, deletions, and modifications, both subtle andgross, may be made to the illustrated and exemplary embodiments of theseparation system without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure. For example, in one aspect the separation system canfurther include a magnetic or electrical induction system, as known inthe art, for enhancing the separation of the different components of themulti-phase fluid. In other aspects, an internal cleaning system 48 (seeFIGS. 2-4, 9) comprising a plurality of injector nozzles can be locatedon or adjacent the bottom inner surface 28 of the tubular body 22, andconfigured to directed a pressurized liquid downward onto the bottominner surface 28, thereby causing any buildup of solids, debris, orsludge to be swept toward collection drains 49. These and otherrevisions might be made by those of skill in the art without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention that is constrained only bythe following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A separation system for separating the componentsof a flow of a multi-phase fluid, the separation system comprising: anelongate separator vessel having a longitudinal axis oriented on anincline relative to horizontal to define a lower inlet end having aninlet configured to receive the flow of the multi-phase fluid, a raisedoutlet end, and an inclined top inner surface extending from the inletend to the outlet end; a first weir plate positioned in the separatorvessel above the inlet end to define a lower section of the separatorvessel, the first weir plate extending upward from a bottom innersurface to a first upper edge spaced below the top inner surface so asto direct the multi-phase fluid to flow upward over the first upper edgeand into an intermediate section of the separator vessel locatedforwardly or above the first weir plate; a second weir plate positionedin the separator vessel below the outlet end to define an upper sectionof the separator vessel, the second weir plate extending upward from thebottom inner surface to a second upper edge spaced below the top innersurface configured to define a liquid level in the separator vessel andto allow an oil component of the multi-phase flow to flow laterally fromthe intermediate section over the second upper edge and into the uppersection located forwardly or above the second weir plate; a gas/vaporoutlet at a top portion of the upper section configured for discharginga gas/vapor component of the multi-phase fluid from the separatorvessel; an oil outlet at a bottom portion of the upper sectionconfigured for discharging the oil component of the multi-phase fluidfrom the separator vessel; and a clear water pipe having a withdrawalopening located below the second weir plate and configured forwithdrawing a clear water component of the multi-phase fluid from theseparator vessel, wherein the separator vessel is configured forcontinuous flow operation with the incline ranging between about 10degrees to about 45 degrees.
 2. The separation system of claim 1,wherein the incline of the elongate separator vessel is adjustable inaccordance with the composition of the multi-phase fluid.
 3. Theseparation system of claim 1, wherein the bottom inner surface furthercomprises an inclined bottom inner surface extending from the inlet endto the outlet end, and wherein the withdrawal opening of the clear waterpipe is located proximate the bottom inner surface.
 4. The separationsystem of claim 1, wherein the clear water pipe further comprises: arising section extending from the withdrawal opening upward toward thetop inner surface to an inverted elbow having a convex lower surfacespaced below the second upper edge, so as to define a pour-over surfacefor the clear water component; and a descending section extending fromthe inverted elbow to a clear water outlet within the intermediatesection of the separator vessel.
 5. The separation system of claim 4,wherein the descending section of the clear water pipe further comprisesa first descending section aligned substantially parallel to the risingsection and a second descending section aligned substantially parallelto and adjacent an inclined bottom inner surface of the separator vesselextending from the inlet end to the outlet end.
 6. The separation systemof claim 1, further comprising an inlet separator located within thelower section and in fluid communication with the inlet, the inletseparator being configured to provide an initial separation of themulti-phase fluid upon entry into the separator vessel.
 7. Theseparation system of claim 1, wherein the inlet end and the outlet endof the separator vessel further comprise a rounded inlet end cap and arounded outlet end cap, respectively.
 8. The separation system of claim7, wherein inlet extends through the rounded inlet end cap.
 9. Theseparation system of claim 7, wherein gas/vapor outlet extends throughan upper portion of the rounded outlet end cap.
 10. The separationsystem of claim 7, wherein oil outlet extends through a lower portion ofthe rounded outlet end cap.
 11. The separation system of claim 1,further comprising at least one diverter plate disposed transversely tothe longitudinal axis in the intermediate section and configured toredirect the fluid along a tortuous vertical path within theintermediate section.
 12. A separation system for separating thecomponents of a flow of a multi-phase fluid, the separation systemcomprising: an elongate separator vessel having a longitudinal axisoriented on an incline relative to horizontal to define a lower inletend having an inlet configured to receive the flow of the multi-phasefluid, a raised outlet end, and an inclined top inner surface extendingfrom the inlet end to the outlet end; a lower section defined by a lowerweir plate positioned in the separator vessel above the inlet end andextending upward from a bottom inner surface to a first upper edgespaced below the top inner surface, so as to direct the multi-phasefluid to flow upward over the first upper edge; an upper section definedby an upper weir plate positioned in the separator vessel below theoutlet end and extending upward from the bottom inner surface to asecond upper edge spaced below the top inner surface configured todefine a liquid level in the separator vessel, the upper section beingconfigured to receive an oil component of the multi-phase flow flowingover second weir plate upper edge; an intermediate section of theseparator vessel located between the lower weir plate and the upper weirplate; a gas/vapor outlet at a top portion of the upper sectionconfigured for discharging a gas/vapor component of the multi-phasefluid from the separator vessel; an oil outlet at a bottom portion ofthe upper section configured for discharging the oil component of themulti-phase fluid from the separator vessel; and a clear water pipehaving a withdrawal opening located below the second weir plate andconfigured for withdrawing a clear water component of the multi-phasefluid from the separator vessel, the clear water pipe including: arising section extending from the withdrawal opening upward toward thetop inner surface to an inverted elbow having a convex lower surfacespaced below the second upper edge so as to define a pour-over surfacefor the clear water component; and a descending section extending fromthe inverted elbow to a water outlet within the intermediate section ofthe separator vessel.
 13. The separation system of claim 12, wherein theseparator vessel is configured for continuous flow operation with theincline adjustably ranging between about 5 degrees to about 85 degreesrelative to horizontal.
 14. The separation system of claim 13, whereinthe separator vessel is configured for continuous flow operation withthe incline adjustably ranging between about 5 degrees to about 60degrees relative to horizontal.
 15. The separation system of claim 14,wherein the separator vessel is configured for continuous flow operationwith the incline adjustably ranging between about 10 degrees to about 45degrees relative to horizontal.
 16. The separation system of claim 12,wherein the incline of the separator vessel is adjustable in accordancewith the composition of the multi-phase fluid.
 17. The separation systemof claim 12, wherein the bottom inner surface further comprises aninclined bottom inner surface extending from the inlet end to the outletend, and wherein the withdrawal opening of the clear water pipe islocated proximate the bottom inner surface.
 18. The separation system ofclaim 17, wherein the descending section of the clear water pipe furthercomprises a first descending section aligned substantially parallel tothe rising section and a second descending section aligned substantiallyparallel to and adjacent the inclined bottom inner surface of theseparator vessel.
 19. The separation system of claim 12, furthercomprising a cyclonic inlet separator located within the lower sectionand in fluid communication with the inlet, the cyclonic inlet separatorbeing configured to provide an initial dynamic centrifugal separation ofthe multi-phase fluid upon entry into the separator vessel.
 20. Theseparation system of claim 12, further comprising at least one diverterplate disposed transversely to a longitudinal axis within theintermediate section of the separator vessel and configured to redirectthe fluid along a tortuous vertical path within the intermediatesection.